Hot Topics:

York County lawmakers talk about shots fired incident in Washington, D.C.

By ED MAHON

Daily Record/Sunday News

Updated:
10/03/2013 11:10:57 PM EDT

U.S. Rep. Scott Perry, R-York County, was in his Washington, D.C., office, looking over some legislation and listening to other members speak on the House floor, when the session abruptly ended, in the midst of someone's remarks.

"I thought that was odd. And I hadn't seen that in the past," Perry said Thursday afternoon.

At about that moment, the alarm in the hall went off, Perry said. Staff members closed the doors, turned off the lights and followed directions to shelter in place.

Outside the Capitol, shots rang out at midafternoon bringing an already tense Congress under lockdown, a nerve-wracking moment in a city still recovering from a Sept. 16 mass shooting at the Navy Yard. Authorities and witnesses said a woman tried to ram her car through a White House barricade then led police on a chase that ended in gunfire and her death outside the Capitol more than 1 mile away.

As the lockdown began, Perry said his fist concern was making sure his staff was accounted for.

He said he thought about the recent attack at a Kenyan mall and the Navy Yard shooting. He said he thought about how he needed to contact his family. And he said he was concerned about any victims.

"There's a whole range of thoughts that are going through your head," Perry said shortly after the lockdown ended. "...You're thinking it's a good time for a few prayers, as well."

Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier told reporters Thursday evening that shots were fired in two locations. Near the Capitol, police killed the woman driving the black Infiniti with a young child inside. She said the child, who is about a year old, is in good condition and in protective custody.

U.S. Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine said the incident is believed to be an isolated act unrelated to terrorism.

Tourists watched the shooting unfold on Constitution Avenue outside the Capitol as lawmakers inside debated how to end a government shutdown. Police quickly locked down the entire complex temporarily, and both houses of Congress went into recess.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said in a statement that he was walking outside the Capitol when he "heard a popping noise that sounded like gunfire."

He said the Capitol Police quickly directed him and others to nearby shelter.

Perry said he didn't hear any shots from where he was in the Cannon House Office Building. But he described a tense mood during a lockdown that ended up lasting about 45 minutes.

Perry said he and about a half dozen other people in his office waited a little while before turning on news channels, because they "wanted to kind of maintain some noise discipline" and be able to listen to instructions.

He said he also initially waited to text his wife that he was OK, in part, because he was concerned about cell tower infrastructure being overwhelmed.

Perry is a colonel in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, and he served in Iraq.

That's not the case as a Congress member, wearing dress clothes in the Capitol complex.

"You feel pretty vulnerable, quite honestly, at least if you're used to being able to return fire," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

'Shocked'

William P. Doyle, a commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission, usually commutes to Washington, D.C., from Spring Garden Township.

But he said complications from the partial federal government shutdown led him to work from home Thursday.

He said many people who work in D.C. are still reeling from the recent Navy Yard shooting.

"I was shocked," Doyle said of Thursday's gunfire outside the Capitol. "This is all fresh in my mind. ...When you see it, it's like, oh, not again."

Below is a live blog on what's been happening:

Below is a report from the Associated Press:

WASHINGTON (AP) - A woman driving a black Lexus tried to ram through a White House barricade Thursday, then led police on a chase that ended in gunfire outside the Capitol, witnesses and officials said.

Tourists watched the shooting unfold on Constitution Avenue outside the Capitol as lawmakers inside debated how to end a government shutdown. Police quickly locked down the entire complex for about an hour, and both houses of Congress went into recess.

The pursuit began when a car tried to ram a security barricade blocking the stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the case by name and insisted on anonymity.

Witnesses said at least 20 police cars chased the Lexus toward Capitol Hill, where the car crashed outside the Capitol.

Tourist Edmund Ofori-Attah said he walked toward the scene, curious about what was going on.

"Then I heard the gunfire" and hit the ground, he said.

Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer said a woman was driving the car and had a child with her. Ofori-Attah said the child appeared to be about 2 to 3 years old.

Gainer said the child was taken to a hospital.

Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine said the driver was in custody. He did not disclose her condition.

A police officer was injured in the traffic accident but Gainer said the injuries were not life threatening.

"We heard three, four, five pops," said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who was walking from the Capitol to an office building across the street. Police ordered Casey and nearby tourists to crouch behind a car for protection, then hustled everyone into the Capitol.

"There were multiple shots fired and the air was filled with gunpowder," said Berin Szoka, whose office at a technology think tank overlooks the shooting scene.

The shooting comes two weeks after a mentally disturbed employee terrorized the Navy Yard with a shotgun, leaving 13 people dead including the gunman.

Before the disruption, lawmakers had been trying to find common ground to end a government shutdown. The House had just finished approving legislation aimed at partly lifting the government shutdown by paying National Guard and Reserve members.

People standing outside the Supreme Court across the street from Congress were hurried into the court building by authorities.

The White House also was briefly locked down after the incident at Capitol Hill and the stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the compound was closed to pedestrians. Secret Service said the procedures were precautionary.